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  • 2005-2009  (39)
  • de Mello, Luiz  (26)
  • McKenzie, David
  • Paris : OECD Publishing  (26)
  • Washington, D.C : The World Bank  (13)
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Material
Language
Years
Year
Author, Corporation
Publisher
Keywords
  • 1
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    The Effectiveness of Education and Health Spending among Brazilian Municipalities (2009)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 23 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.712
    DOI: 10.1787/222817104376
    URL: Volltext
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    Online Resource
    MPI Ethno. Forsch.
  • 2
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    The Determinants of Employment and Earnings in Indonesia : A Multinomial Selection Approach (2009)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 25 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.690
    Keywords: Economics ; Indonesia
    Abstract: This paper uses household survey (Sakernas) data from the 1996 and 2004 to estimate the determinants of earnings in Indonesia. The Indonesian labour market is segmented, with a majority of workers engaged in informal-sector occupations, and earnings data are available only for formal-sector workers (salaried employees). This posed problems for the estimation of earnings equations, because selection into different labour market statuses is likely to be non-random. In order to describe selection into different labour market statuses we use the most general version of the method proposed by Dubin and McFadden (1984), which Bourguignon, Fournier and Gurgand (2007) proved to be preferable to other available multinomial selection methods. We also deal with reverse causality between education attainment and earnings by estimating the selection equations using an instrumental variable technique. Our findings cast doubt on the use of a binomial selection rule and suggest that workers with higher levels of educational attainment are most likely to find a job in the formal sector, and that the informal sector is perceived by those workers who cannot obtain a job in the formal sector as an alternative to inactivity. This Working Paper relates to the 2008 OECD Economic Assessment of Indonesia (www.oecd.org/eco/surveys/indonesia).
    DOI: 10.1787/224864812153
    URL: Volltext
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  • 3
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    The Bank Lending Channel of Monetary Transmission in Brazil : A VECM Approach (2009)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 24 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.711
    DOI: 10.1787/222818683155
    URL: Volltext
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  • 4
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    Do Latin American Central Bankers Behave Non-Linearly? : The Experiences of Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Mexico (2009)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 28 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.679
    DOI: 10.1787/226284172842
    URL: Volltext
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  • 5
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    Price and Volume Elasticities of Brazilian Foreign Trade : A Profit Function Approach (2009)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 20 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.704
    Keywords: Economics ; Brazil
    Abstract: Brazil, like other natural resource-exporting countries, has benefited from a sharp increase in commodity prices over the last few years. To investigate the possible impact of terms-of-trade gains on the real economy, this paper estimates normalised quadratic input demand and output supply functions for the Brazilian economy during 1997-2008. Technological change is modelled in a flexible manner through the inclusion of quadratic splines in the profit function. The paper contributes to the literature by using nonlinear seemingly unrelated regression techniques to estimate the input demand and output supply functions and by disaggregating exports and imports into capital, consumption and intermediate goods. Improvements in the terms of trade due to rising export prices and/or falling import prices are associated with hikes in export volumes on the back of rising import demand and some labour shedding in the sectors using imported capital goods. The direct impact of terms-of-trade changes on domestic consumption and investment is comparatively modest, possibly due to the fact that the Brazilian economy remains relatively closed to trade.
    DOI: 10.1787/223388731464
    URL: Volltext
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  • 6
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    Remittances and the Brain Drain Revisited : the Microdata Show That More Educated Migrants Remit More (2009)
    Washington, D.C : The World Bank
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: Online-Ressource (37 p)
    Edition: 2009 World Bank eLibrary
    Parallel Title: Bollard, Albert Remittances and the Brain Drain Revisited
    Abstract: Two of the most salient trends surrounding the issue of migration and development over the past two decades are the large rise in remittances, and an increased flow of skilled migration. However, recent literature based on cross-country regressions has claimed that more educated migrants remit less, leading to concerns that further increases in skilled migration will hamper remittance growth. This paper revisits the relationship between education and remitting behavior using microdata from surveys of immigrants in 11 major destination countries. The data show a mixed pattern between education and the likelihood of remitting, and a strong positive relationship between education and the amount remitted conditional on remitting. Combining these intensive and extensive margins gives an overall positive effect of education on the amount remitted. The microdata then allow investigation as to why the more educated remit more. The analysis finds that the higher income earned by migrants, rather than characteristics of their family situations, explains much of the higher remittances
    DOI: 10.1596/1813-9450-5113
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  • 7
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    Impact Assessments in Finance and Private Sector Development : What Have We Learned and What Should We Learn? (2009)
    Washington, D.C : The World Bank
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: Online-Ressource (31 p)
    Edition: 2009 World Bank eLibrary
    Parallel Title: McKenzie, David Impact Assessments in Finance and Private Sector Development
    Abstract: Until recently rigorous impact evaluations have been rare in the area of finance and private sector development. One reason for this is the perception that many policies and projects in this area lend themselves less to formal evaluations. However, a vanguard of new impact evaluations on areas as diverse as fostering microenterprise growth, microfinance, rainfall insurance, and regulatory reform demonstrates that in many circumstances serious evaluation is possible. The purpose of this paper is to synthesize and distil the policy and implementation lessons emerging from these studies, use them to demonstrate the feasibility of impact evaluations in a broader array of topics, and thereby help prompt new impact evaluations for projects going forward
    DOI: 10.1596/1813-9450-4944
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  • 8
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    The Impacts of International Migration On Remaining Household Members : Omnibus Results From A Migration Lottery Program (2009)
    Washington, D.C : The World Bank
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: Online-Ressource (46 p)
    Edition: 2009 World Bank eLibrary
    Parallel Title: Gibson, John The Impacts of International Migration On Remaining Household Members
    Abstract: The impacts of international migration on development in the sending countries, and especially the effects on remaining household members, are increasingly studied. However, comparisons of households in developing countries with and without migrants are complicated by a double-selectivity problem: households self-select into migration, and among households involved in migration, some send a subset of members with the rest remaining while other households migrate en masse. The authors address these selectivity issues using the randomization provided by an immigration ballot under the Pacific Access Category of New Zealand’s immigration policy. They survey applicants to the 2002-05 ballots in Tonga and compare outcomes for the remaining household members of emigrants with those for members of similar households that were unsuccessful in the ballots. The immigration laws determine which household members can accompany the principal migrant, providing an instrument to address the second selectivity issue. Using this natural experiment, the authors examine the myriad impacts that migration has on remaining household members, focussing on labor supply, income, durable assets, financial service usage, diet, and physical and mental health. The analysis uses multiple hypothesis testing procedures to examine which impacts are robust. The findings indicate that the overall impact on households left behind is largely negative. The findings also reveal evidence that both sources of selectivity matter, leading studies that fail to adequately address them to misrepresent the impact of migration
    DOI: 10.1596/1813-9450-4956
    URL: Volltext  (Deutschlandweit zugänglich)
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  • 9
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    The Microeconomic Determinants of Emigration and Return Migration of the Best and Brightest : Evidence From the Pacific (2009)
    Washington, D.C : The World Bank
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: Online-Ressource (53 p)
    Edition: 2009 World Bank eLibrary
    Parallel Title: Gibson, John The Microeconomic Determinants of Emigration and Return Migration of the Best and Brightest
    Abstract: A unique survey which tracks worldwide the best and brightest academic performers from three Pacific countries is used to assess the extent of emigration and return migration among the very highly skilled, and to analyze, at the microeconomic level, the determinants of these migration choices. Although the estimates indicate that the income gains from migration are very large, not everyone migrates and many return. Within this group of highly skilled individuals, the emigration decision is found to be most strongly associated with preference variables such as risk aversion, patience, and choice of subjects in secondary school, and not strongly linked to either liquidity constraints or the gain in income to be had from migrating. Likewise, the decision to return is strongly linked to family and lifestyle reasons, rather than to the income opportunities in different countries. Overall the data show a relatively limited role for income maximization in distinguishing migration propensities among the very highly skilled, and point to the need to pay more attention to other components of the utility maximization decision
    DOI: 10.1596/1813-9450-4965
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  • 10
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    How Does Decentralised Minimum-Wage Setting Affect Unemployment and Informality? : The Case of Indonesia (2009)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 27 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.710
    Keywords: Economics ; Indonesia
    Abstract: The Indonesian labour market is characterised by widespread informality. To some extent, these outcomes can be attributed to a sharp increase in the real value of the minimum wage since 2001, when minimum-wage setting was decentralised to the provincial governments. To test this hypothesis, this paper uses survey data on the labour market (Sakernas), household income and expenditure (Susenas) and the industrial sector (Survei Industri) to construct a district-level dataset spanning the period 1996 to 2004. The effects of changes in the minimum wage on unemployment, formal-sector employment and the incidence of informality in urban areas are estimated separately by fixed effects and jointly by a seemingly unrelated regression (SUR) estimator. Our findings show that an increase in the minimum-to-mean wage ratio is associated with a net increase in employment: a rise in informal-sector employment more than compensates for job losses in the formal sector. This Working Paper relates to the 2008 OECD Economic Assessment of Indonesia (www.oecd.org/eco/surveys/indonesia).
    DOI: 10.1787/222850046464
    URL: Volltext
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  • 11
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    Current Account Sustainability in Brazil : A Non-Linear Approach (2009)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 35 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.703
    Keywords: Economics ; Brazil
    Abstract: The possibility that a country’s external current account may adjust nonlinearly to shocks is attracting increasing attention in the empirical literature. To shed further light on this issue in the context of emerging-market economies, this paper uses Brazilian data to estimate the determinants of the current account in a smooth-transition vector-autoregressive (ST-VAR) setting. We allow for the transition parameters and the model coefficients to be estimated simultaneously by non-linear constrained maximum likelihood. We find strong evidence of non-linearity in the VAR when (lagged) government consumption and investment are used as the variables governing transition across regimes. The computation of non-linear impulse response functions suggests that the system’s history, as well as the sign and magnitude of shocks, affect the current account’s responses to exogenous changes in income, government consumption and investment. In particular, responses to fiscal shocks depend on whether they are positive or negative and whether they follow periods of fiscal expansions or contractions. Current account responses to a positive fiscal impulse are much stronger when conditioned on periods of fiscal expansion (rising government consumption) than retrenchment. The importance of conditioning history and the magnitude of shocks in the current account’s response to shocks is confirmed by forecast error variance decomposition analysis.
    DOI: 10.1787/223518424256
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  • 12
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    Managing Chile's Macroeconomy during and after the Copper Price Boom (2008)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 32 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.605
    Keywords: Economics ; Chile
    Abstract: Compliance with the structural budget surplus rule, which has been in place since 2001, has allowed the government to maintain a counter-cyclical fiscal stance in an environment of rising copper prices, while delivering a gradual reduction in public indebtedness. Monetary policy is conducted within a framework that combines inflation targeting with exchange-rate flexibility. A Fiscal Responsibility Law was promulgated in September 2006, strengthening the macroeconomic framework further by embedding the fiscal rule in law and setting out regulations for the use of fiscal savings. Complementary pension reform is being discussed in Congress with the objective of strengthening the pension system’s solidarity pillar and encouraging retirement saving. The tax system is also being improved with a view to removing obstacles to financial deepening and to business-sector development. Government spending on social programmes is budgeted to rise considerably, in line with the authorities’ emphasis on social development. The main challenge in the macroeconomic area is to maintain the policy setting that has served Chile so well over the recent copper-price upswing, while tempering demands for hiking public social spending and maintaining a lean public sector in a low-tax, low-debt environment. This paper relates to the 2007 Economic Survey of Chile (www.oecd.org/eco/surveys/chile).
    DOI: 10.1787/242135544660
    URL: Volltext
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  • 13
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    Avoiding the Value Added Tax : Theory and Cross-Country Evidence (2008)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 23 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.604
    Keywords: Economics
    Abstract: This paper develops a differential game of tax avoidance by modelling the interactions between a taxpayer and the tax authority. This framework is particularly useful for explicitly modelling situations of conflict. The solution to the game is a non-co-operative Nash that depends on the resources that need to be used by the tax authority to enforce legislation and the cost to be borne by the taxpayer in tax compliance, provided that the curvature of the utility functions is bounded. Empirical evidence is provided for the value added tax (VAT) using a cross-section of OECD and non-OECD countries. OECD indicators of tax administration efficiency are included in the regressions. The empirical findings show that VAT efficiency, defined as the ratio of collections as a share of consumption to the statutory rate, rises the lower the VAT rate, the lower the share of administrative costs in tax revenue (proxying for the efficiency of tax administration), the more pro-competition the regulatory framework in product markets (measuring non-tax incentives for non-compliance) and the better the country’s governance indicators (regulatory quality, rule of law and government effectiveness). This paper is forthcoming in the Public Finance Review.
    DOI: 10.1787/242167601452
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  • 14
    Online Resource
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    Indonesia: Growth Performance and Policy Challenges (2008)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 48 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.637
    Keywords: Economics ; Indonesia
    Abstract: Indonesia’s growth performance is improving, following a slow recovery from the 1997-98 financial crisis. Investment is picking up, despite considerable business-climate obstacles to entrepreneurship. Unemployment remains high, and labour informality is pervasive. Fiscal policy has been conducted responsibly and in an increasingly decentralised manner. Monetary policy is now carried out within a fully-fledged inflation-targeting framework. This paper argues that the main barriers to raising the economy’s growth potential are to be found on the supply side of the economy. Indonesia will need to improve the business environment and to make better use of labour inputs to put the economy on a higher growth trajectory. The country’s income gap relative to the OECD is sizeable, and several years of sustained growth will be needed to eliminate it. This Working Paper relates to the 2008 OECD Economic Assessment of Indonesia (www.oecd.org/eco/surveys/indonesia).
    DOI: 10.1787/236831785800
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  • 15
    Online Resource
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    Encouraging Labour Force Participation in Chile (2008)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 29 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.608
    Keywords: Economics ; Chile
    Abstract: Chile’s labour force participation is low by comparison with most countries in the OECD area, especially among females and youths. In the case of women, labour supply has risen steadily over time for prime-age and older individuals, against a background of relative stability for men. With regards to youths, participation rates are trending down, primarily as a result of rising school enrolment, especially for males, while remaining fairly low and stable over the years for young females. The main policy challenge in this area is to raise female labour supply further, for both prime-age individuals and youths, as a means of making a better use of labour inputs in support of long-term growth. This can be achieved essentially by removing provisions in the labour code that constrain the allocation of working time and by improving access to affordable child care for mothers with young children. Policies aimed at fostering human capital accumulation for the population as a whole would also contribute, because educational attainment is one of the most powerful determinants of labour force participation. This paper relates to the 2007 Economic Survey of Chile (www.oecd.org/eco/surveys/chile).
    DOI: 10.1787/242103851837
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  • 16
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    Who Are The Microenterprise Owners? : Evidence From Sri Lanka On Tokman V. De Soto (2008)
    Washington, D.C : The World Bank
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: Online-Ressource (1 online resource (35 p.))
    Edition: Online-Ausg. World Bank E-Library Archive
    Parallel Title: de Mel, Suresh Who Are The Microenterprise Owners?
    Keywords: Education ; Employment ; Employment generation ; Entry costs ; Informal sector ; Labor Markets ; Labor force ; Labor organization ; Microfinance ; Productive employment ; Self employed ; Social Protections and Labor ; Tertiary Education ; Work & Working Conditions ; Worker ; Workers ; Education ; Employment ; Employment generation ; Entry costs ; Informal sector ; Labor Markets ; Labor force ; Labor organization ; Microfinance ; Productive employment ; Self employed ; Social Protections and Labor ; Tertiary Education ; Work & Working Conditions ; Worker ; Workers ; Education ; Employment ; Employment generation ; Entry costs ; Informal sector ; Labor Markets ; Labor force ; Labor organization ; Microfinance ; Productive employment ; Self employed ; Social Protections and Labor ; Tertiary Education ; Work & Working Conditions ; Worker ; Workers
    Abstract: Is the vast army of the self-employed in low income countries a source of employment generation? This paper uses data from surveys in Sri Lanka to compare the characteristics of own account workers (non-employers) with wage workers and with owners of larger firms. The authors use a rich set of measures of background, ability, and attitudes, including lottery experiments measuring risk attitudes. Consistent with the International Labor Organization's views of the self employed (represented by Tokman), the analysis finds that two-thirds to three-quarters of the own account workers have characteristics which are more like wage workers than larger firm owners. This suggests the majority of the own account workers are unlikely to become employers. Using a two and a half year panel of enterprises, the authors show that the minority of own account workers who are more like larger firm owners are more likely to expand by adding paid employees. The results suggest that finance is not the sole constraint to growth of microenterprises, and provides an explanation for the low rates of growth of enterprises supported by microlending
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  • 17
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    Does It Pay Firms To Register For Taxes ? : The Impact of Formality On Firm Profitability (2008)
    Washington, D.C : The World Bank
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: Online-Ressource (1 online resource (31 p.))
    Edition: Online-Ausg. World Bank E-Library Archive
    Parallel Title: McKenzie, David Does It Pay Firms To Register For Taxes ?
    Keywords: Debt Markets ; E-Business ; Employment ; Entrepreneurs ; Finance and Financial Sector Development ; Firm Size ; Firms ; Macroeconomics and Economic Growth ; Medium Enterprises ; Microenterprises ; Microfinance ; Private Sector Development ; Small Enterprises ; Small Firms ; Stores ; Supplier ; Taxation and Subsidies ; Transport ; Transport Economics, Policy and Planning ; Debt Markets ; E-Business ; Employment ; Entrepreneurs ; Finance and Financial Sector Development ; Firm Size ; Firms ; Macroeconomics and Economic Growth ; Medium Enterprises ; Microenterprises ; Microfinance ; Private Sector Development ; Small Enterprises ; Small Firms ; Stores ; Supplier ; Taxation and Subsidies ; Transport ; Transport Economics, Policy and Planning ; Debt Markets ; E-Business ; Employment ; Entrepreneurs ; Finance and Financial Sector Development ; Firm Size ; Firms ; Macroeconomics and Economic Growth ; Medium Enterprises ; Microenterprises ; Microfinance ; Private Sector Development ; Small Enterprises ; Small Firms ; Stores ; Supplier ; Taxation and Subsidies ; Transport ; Transport Economics, Policy and Planning
    Abstract: This paper estimates the impact of registering for taxes on firm profits in Bolivia, the country with the highest levels of informality in Latin America. A new survey of micro and small firms enables the authors to control for a rich set of measures of owner ability and business motivations that can affect both profits and the decision to formalize. The paper identifies the impact of tax registration on business profitability using the distance of a firm from the tax office where registration occurs, conditional on the distance to the city center, as an instrument for registration. Proximity to the tax office provides firms with more information about registration, but is argued to not directly affect profits. The findings show that tax registration leads to significantly higher profits for the firms that the instrument affects. However, there is also evidence of heterogeneous effects of tax formality on profits. Tax registration is found to increase profits for the mid-size firms in the sample, but to lower profits for both the smaller and larger firms, in contrast to the standard view that formality increases profits. The analysis shows that owners of large firms who have managed to stay informal have higher entrepreneurial ability than formal firm owners, in contrast to the standard view (correct among smaller firms) that informal firm owners have low ability
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  • 18
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    Interdependencies between Monetary policy and Foreign-Exchange Intervention under Inflation Targeting : The Case of Brazil and the Czech Republic (2008)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 32 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.593
    Keywords: Economics ; Brazil ; Czech Republic
    Abstract: The bulk of recent literature on foreign-exchange interventions has overlooked the potential interdependencies that may exist between these operations and the conduct of monetary policy. This is the case even under inflation targeting and especially in emerging-market economies, because central banks often explicitly reserve the right to intervene to calm disorderly markets and to accumulate foreign reserves, and when the exchange rate is perceived as out of step with fundamentals. This paper uses a friction model to estimate intervention reaction functions and the associated marginal effects for Brazil and the Czech Republic since adoption of inflation targeting in these countries in 1999 and 1998, respectively. The main findings are that: i) in both countries interventions occur predominantly to reduce exchange-rate volatility, while in Brazil the central bank also reacts to exchange-rate deviations from medium-term trends; ii) there are strong, asymmetric threshold effects in the reaction functions, and interventions are more likely and of higher magnitudes when they are carried out to depreciate than to appreciate the domestic currency; and iii) interventions seem to take place independently of contemporaneous monetary policy in Brazil, but not in the Czech Republic, where both policies appear to be interrelated.
    DOI: 10.1787/245585283155
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  • 19
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    Tackling Business and Labour Informality in Chile (2008)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 36 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.607
    Keywords: Economics ; Chile
    Abstract: Informality often arises from disincentives associated with high taxes and a restrictive regulatory framework in both labour and product markets. About 20% of the Chilean population aged 15 years and above and working at least 20 hours per week did not have a formal labour contract in 2006. At the same time, nearly 11% of the potential value added tax base is estimated to have been undeclared in 2005. While Chile’s tax system is not particularly burdensome to business formality, there is scope for making product-market regulations less onerous to firms and the labour code more flexible, especially with regards to indefinite contracts and the allocation of working time. Low human capital remains an important obstacle to reducing labour informality. To the extent that informal businesses also hire informally, there is some room for designing policies to tackle business informality in conjunction with those aimed at boosting formal labour contracting. Chile is strengthening its social safety net through the introduction of unemployment insurance and by reforming existing health insurance and pension systems. An important policy question is whether the incentives for formality arising from more comprehensive social protection will be strong enough to compensate for the additional costs these contributory programmes entail. This paper relates to the 2007 Economic Survey of Chile (www.oecd.org/eco/surveys/chile).
    DOI: 10.1787/242111325372
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  • 20
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    The Brazilian 'Tax War' : The Case of Value-Added Tax Competition among the States (2007)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 27 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.544
    Keywords: Economics ; Brazil
    Abstract: This paper tests for horizontal tax competition in the VAT for a sample of Brazilian states in the period 1985-2001. The states have considerable autonomy to set their VAT rates and bases, often using this tax as an industrial policy tool. The empirical findings, based on the estimation of a tax reaction function in an error-correction set-up, confirm the hypothesis of horizontal tax competition: the states react strongly to changes in their neighbours? VAT code, especially those that belong to the same geo-economic region. Also, there appears to be a Stackelberg leader among the states, with the remaining jurisdictions responding strongly to its policy moves. There is no co-occupancy of tax bases between different levels of government and hence limited scope for vertical externalities in tax setting. But the fact that the federal government shares with the states part of the revenue of its more elastic taxes, such as the income tax, appears to affect the opportunity cost of horizontal tax competition.
    DOI: 10.1787/286220576442
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  • 21
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    Local Government Finances : The Link between Intergovernmental Transfers and Net Worth (2007)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 30 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.581
    Keywords: Economics
    Abstract: There is a large literature on how the sharing of revenue between different levels of government and the design of intergovernmental transfer schemes affect sub-national finances. Using a panel of OECD countries during 1980-2005, this paper tests for: i) the presence of a stable long-run statistical association between changes in transfer receipts and sub-national net worth and ii) the direction of causality between changes in transfer receipts and net worth. The main empirical findings are that, first, there is a stable long-term relationship between transfer receipts and local government net worth for the case of current, but not capital, transfers. An increase in intergovernmental transfer receipts is found to be associated with a modest reduction in the recipient jurisdiction’s net worth over the long term, but a fall in net worth is associated with an almost one-to-one subsequent increase in transfer receipts. Second, the direction of causality is sensitive to the technique used to estimate the long-term parameters. One technique suggests that causality runs from transfers to net worth, which lends support to a large literature on the effect of cost-shifting on sub-national budget outcomes. But causality also appears to run from net worth to transfer receipts, suggesting that transfers may be used as a deficitfinancing tool.
    DOI: 10.1787/080476332876
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  • 22
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    Using The Global Positioning System In Household Surveys For Better Economics And Better Policy (2007)
    Washington, D.C : The World Bank
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: Online-Ressource (1 online resource (29 p.))
    Edition: Online-Ausg. World Bank E-Library Archive
    Parallel Title: McKenzie, David Using The Global Positioning System In Household Surveys For Better Economics And Better Policy
    Keywords: Accessibility ; Air ; Aircraft ; Costs ; E-Business ; Externalities ; Health Monitoring and Evaluation ; Health, Nutrition and Population ; Infrastructure ; Policies ; Private Sector Development ; Railway ; Railway Lines ; Road ; Road Network ; Roads ; Roads and Highways ; Signals ; Training ; Transport ; Transport Economics, Policy and Planning ; Accessibility ; Air ; Aircraft ; Costs ; E-Business ; Externalities ; Health Monitoring and Evaluation ; Health, Nutrition and Population ; Infrastructure ; Policies ; Private Sector Development ; Railway ; Railway Lines ; Road ; Road Network ; Roads ; Roads and Highways ; Signals ; Training ; Transport ; Transport Economics, Policy and Planning ; Accessibility ; Air ; Aircraft ; Costs ; E-Business ; Externalities ; Health Monitoring and Evaluation ; Health, Nutrition and Population ; Infrastructure ; Policies ; Private Sector Development ; Railway ; Railway Lines ; Road ; Road Network ; Roads ; Roads and Highways ; Signals ; Training ; Transport ; Transport Economics, Policy and Planning
    Abstract: Distance and location are important determinants of many choices that economists study. While these variables can sometimes be obtained from secondary data, economists often rely on information that is self-reported by respondents in surveys. These self-reports are used especially for the distance from households or community centers to various features such as roads, markets, schools, clinics, and other public services. There is growing evidence that self-reported distance is measured with error and that these errors are correlated with outcomes of interest. In contrast to self-reports, the Global Positioning System (GPS) can determine almost exact location (typically within 15 meters). The falling cost of GPS receivers (typically below US
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  • 23
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    Measuring Microenterprise Profits : Don't Ask How The Sausage Is Made (2007)
    Washington, D.C : The World Bank
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: Online-Ressource (1 online resource (29 p.))
    Edition: Online-Ausg. World Bank E-Library Archive
    Parallel Title: Woodruff, Christopher Measuring Microenterprise Profits
    Keywords: Bank Policy ; Business Environment ; Business in Development ; Competitiveness and Competition Policy ; Debt Markets ; Developing countries ; Economic Theory and Research ; Finance and Financial Sector Development ; Financial support ; Fungible ; Living Standards ; Macroeconomics and Economic Growth ; Microenterprises ; Microfinance ; Private Sector Development ; Public Sector Development ; Returns ; Tax ; Trust Fund ; Bank Policy ; Business Environment ; Business in Development ; Competitiveness and Competition Policy ; Debt Markets ; Developing countries ; Economic Theory and Research ; Finance and Financial Sector Development ; Financial support ; Fungible ; Living Standards ; Macroeconomics and Economic Growth ; Microenterprises ; Microfinance ; Private Sector Development ; Public Sector Development ; Returns ; Tax ; Trust Fund ; Bank Policy ; Business Environment ; Business in Development ; Competitiveness and Competition Policy ; Debt Markets ; Developing countries ; Economic Theory and Research ; Finance and Financial Sector Development ; Financial support ; Fungible ; Living Standards ; Macroeconomics and Economic Growth ; Microenterprises ; Microfinance ; Private Sector Development ; Public Sector Development ; Returns ; Tax ; Trust Fund
    Abstract: A large share of the world's poor is self-employed. Accurate measurement of profits from microenterprises is therefore critical for studying poverty and inequality, measuring the returns to education, and evaluating the success of microfinance programs. But a myriad of problems plague the measurement of profits. The authors report on a variety of different experiments conducted to better understand the importance of some of these problems and to draw recommendations for collecting profit data. In particular, they (1) examine how far we can reconcile self-reported profits and reports of revenue minus expenses through more detailed questions; (2) examine recall errors in sales and report on the results of experiments which randomly allocated account books to firms; and (3) ask firms how much firms like theirs underreport sales in surveys like this, and have research assistants observe the firms at random times 15-16 times during a month to provide measures for comparison. The authors conclude that firms underreport revenues by about 30 percent, that account diaries have significant effects on both revenues and expenses but not on profits, and that simply asking profits provides a more accurate measure of firm profits than detailed questions on revenues and expenses
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  • 24
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    Migration And Mental Health : Evidence From A Natural Experiment (2007)
    Washington, D.C : The World Bank
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: Online-Ressource (1 online resource (31 p.))
    Edition: Online-Ausg. World Bank E-Library Archive
    Parallel Title: Stillman, Steven Migration And Mental Health
    Keywords: Anxiety ; Children ; Depression ; Families ; Health Effects ; Health, Monitoring and Evaluation ; Health, Nutrition and Population ; Hospital Admission ; Insomnia ; Mental ; Mental Health ; Migrants ; Migration ; People ; Refugees ; Anxiety ; Children ; Depression ; Families ; Health Effects ; Health, Monitoring and Evaluation ; Health, Nutrition and Population ; Hospital Admission ; Insomnia ; Mental ; Mental Health ; Migrants ; Migration ; People ; Refugees ; Anxiety ; Children ; Depression ; Families ; Health Effects ; Health, Monitoring and Evaluation ; Health, Nutrition and Population ; Hospital Admission ; Insomnia ; Mental ; Mental Health ; Migrants ; Migration ; People ; Refugees
    Abstract: People migrate to improve their well-being, whether through an expansion of economic and social opportunities or a reduction in persecution. Yet a large literature suggests that migration can be a stressful process, with potentially negative impacts on mental health, reducing the net benefits of migration. However, to truly understand the effect of migration on mental health one must compare the mental health of migrants to what their mental health would have been had they stayed in their home country. The existing literature is not able to do this and typically settles for comparing the mental health of migrants to that of natives in the destination country, which takes no account of any pre-existing differences between these groups. This paper overcomes the selection problems affecting previous studies of the effect of migration on mental health by examining a migrant lottery program. New Zealand allows a quota of Tongans to immigrate each year with a lottery used to choose among the excess number of applicants. A unique survey conducted by the authors in these two countries allows experimental estimates of the mental health effects of migration to be obtained by comparing the mental health of migrants who were successful applicants in the lottery to the mental health of those who applied to migrate under the quota, but whose names were not drawn in the lottery. Migration is found to lead to improvements in mental health, particularly for women and those with poor mental health in their home country
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  • 25
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    A Land of Milk And Honey With Streets Paved With Gold : Do Emigrants Have Over-Optimistic Expectations About Incomes Abroad ? (2007)
    Washington, D.C : The World Bank
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: Online-Ressource (1 online resource (34 p.))
    Edition: Online-Ausg. World Bank E-Library Archive
    Parallel Title: McKenzie, David A Land of Milk And Honey With Streets Paved With Gold
    Keywords: Accurate Information ; Annual Income ; Bank ; Consumer ; Consumer Goods ; Demands ; Earnings ; Economic Theory and Research ; Education ; Finance and Financial Sector Development ; Financial Literacy ; Fiscal and Monetary Policy ; Health Systems Development and Reform ; Health, Nutrition and Population ; Household Income ; Income ; Income ; Incomes ; Information ; Labor Markets ; Labor Policies ; Macroeconomics and Economic Growth ; Money ; Population Policies ; Public Sector Development ; Remittances ; Social Protections and Labor ; Accurate Information ; Annual Income ; Bank ; Consumer ; Consumer Goods ; Demands ; Earnings ; Economic Theory and Research ; Education ; Finance and Financial Sector Development ; Financial Literacy ; Fiscal and Monetary Policy ; Health Systems Development and Reform ; Health, Nutrition and Population ; Household Income ; Income ; Income ; Incomes ; Information ; Labor Markets ; Labor Policies ; Macroeconomics and Economic Growth ; Money ; Population Policies ; Public Sector Development ; Remittances ; Social Protections and Labor ; Accurate Information ; Annual Income ; Bank ; Consumer ; Consumer Goods ; Demands ; Earnings ; Economic Theory and Research ; Education ; Finance and Financial Sector Development ; Financial Literacy ; Fiscal and Monetary Policy ; Health Systems Development and Reform ; Health, Nutrition and Population ; Household Income ; Income ; Income ; Incomes ; Information ; Labor Markets ; Labor Policies ; Macroeconomics and Economic Growth ; Money ; Population Policies ; Public Sector Development ; Remittances ; Social Protections and Labor
    Abstract: Millions of people emigrate every year in search of better economic and social opportunities. Anecdotal evidence suggests that emigrants may have over-optimistic expectations about the incomes they can earn abroad, resulting in excessive migration pressure, and in disappointment among those who do migrate. Yet there is almost no statistical evidence on how accurately these emigrants predict the incomes that they will earn working abroad. In this paper the authors combine a natural emigration experiment with unique survey data on would-be emigrants' probabilistic expectations about employment and incomes in the migration destination. Their procedure enables them to obtain moments and quantiles of the subjective distribution of expected earnings in the destination country. The authors find a significant underestimation of both unconditional and conditional labor earnings at all points in the distribution. This underestimation appears driven in part by potential migrants placing too much weight on the negative employment experiences of some migrants, and by inaccurate information flows from extended family, who may be trying to moderate remittance demands by understating incomes
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  • 26
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    Returns To Capital In Microenterprises : Evidence From A Field Experiment (2007)
    Washington, D.C : The World Bank
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: Online-Ressource (1 online resource (37 p.))
    Edition: Online-Ausg. World Bank E-Library Archive
    Parallel Title: Woodruff, Christopher Returns To Capital In Microenterprises
    Keywords: Access to Finance ; Capital stock ; Debt Markets ; Developing countries ; Economic Theory and Research ; Equipment ; Finance and Financial Sector Development ; Investment and Investment Climate ; Investment opportunities ; Macroeconomics and Economic Growth ; Market Interest Rate ; Micorenterprises ; Microfinance ; Microfinance ; Productive Investment ; Return ; Returns ; Access to Finance ; Capital stock ; Debt Markets ; Developing countries ; Economic Theory and Research ; Equipment ; Finance and Financial Sector Development ; Investment and Investment Climate ; Investment opportunities ; Macroeconomics and Economic Growth ; Market Interest Rate ; Micorenterprises ; Microfinance ; Microfinance ; Productive Investment ; Return ; Returns ; Access to Finance ; Capital stock ; Debt Markets ; Developing countries ; Economic Theory and Research ; Equipment ; Finance and Financial Sector Development ; Investment and Investment Climate ; Investment opportunities ; Macroeconomics and Economic Growth ; Market Interest Rate ; Micorenterprises ; Microfinance ; Microfinance ; Productive Investment ; Return ; Returns
    Abstract: Small and informal firms account for a large share of employment in developing countries. The rapid expansion of microfinance services is based on the belief that these firms have productive investment opportunities and can enjoy high returns to capital if given the opportunity. However, measuring the return to capital is complicated by unobserved factors such as entrepreneurial ability and demand shocks, which are likely to be correlated with capital stock. The authors use a randomized experiment to overcome this problem and to measure the return to capital for the average microenterprise in their sample, regardless of whether they apply for credit. They accomplish this by providing cash and equipment grants to small firms in Sri Lanka, and measuring the increase in profits arising from this exogenous (positive) shock to capital stock. After controlling for possible spillover effects, the authors find the average real return to capital to be 5.7 percent a month, substantially higher than the market interest rate. They then examine the heterogeneity of treatment effects to explore whether missing credit markets or missing insurance markets are the most likely cause of the high returns. Returns are found to vary with entrepreneurial ability and with measures of other sources of cash within the household, but not to vary with risk aversion or uncertainty
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  • 27
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    Migration, remittances, poverty, and human capital : conceptual and empirical challenges (2007)
    Washington, D.C : The World Bank
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: Online-Ressource (1 online resource (16 p.))
    Edition: Online-Ausg. World Bank E-Library Archive
    Parallel Title: Sasin, Marcin J Migration, remittances, poverty, and human capital
    Keywords: Government policies ; Health Monitoring and Evaluation ; Health, Nutrition and Population ; Human Capital ; Impact of migration ; International migration ; Migration ; Migration data ; Policy Research ; Policy Research Working Paper ; Population Policies ; Practitioners ; Remittances ; Government policies ; Health Monitoring and Evaluation ; Health, Nutrition and Population ; Human Capital ; Impact of migration ; International migration ; Migration ; Migration data ; Policy Research ; Policy Research Working Paper ; Population Policies ; Practitioners ; Remittances ; Government policies ; Health Monitoring and Evaluation ; Health, Nutrition and Population ; Human Capital ; Impact of migration ; International migration ; Migration ; Migration data ; Policy Research ; Policy Research Working Paper ; Population Policies ; Practitioners ; Remittances
    Abstract: This paper reviews common challenges faced by researchers interested in measuring the impact of migration and remittances on income, poverty, inequality, and human capital (or, in general, "welfare") as well as difficulties confronting development practitioners in converting this research into policy advice. On the analytical side, the paper discusses the proper formulation of a research question, the choice of the analytical tools, as well as the interpretation of the results in the presence of pervasive endogeneity in all decisions surrounding migration. Particular attention is given to the use of instrumental variables in migration research. On the policy side, the paper argues that the private nature of migration and remittances implies a need to carefully spell out the rationale for interventions. It also notices the lack of good migration data and proper evaluations of migration-related government policies. The paper focuses mainly on microeconomic evidence about international migration, but much of the discussion extends to other settings as well
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  • 28
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    Monetary Policy and Macroeconomic Stability in Latin America : The Cases of Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Mexico (2007)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 31 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.545
    Keywords: Economics ; Brazil ; Chile ; Colombia ; Mexico
    Abstract: In 1999, new monetary policy regimes were adopted in Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Mexico, combining inflation targeting with floating exchange rates. These regime changes have been accompanied by lower volatility in the monetary stance in Brazil, Colombia and Mexico, despite higher inflation volatility in Brazil and Colombia. This paper estimates a conventional New Keynesian model for these four countries and shows that: i) the post-1999 regime has been associated with greater responsiveness by the monetary authority to changes in expected inflation in Brazil and Chile, while in Colombia and Mexico monetary policy has become less counter-cyclical, ii) lower interest-rate volatility in the post-1999 period owes more to a benign economic environment than to a change in the policy setting, and iii) the change in the monetary regime has not yet resulted in a reduction in output volatility in these countries.
    DOI: 10.1787/285851107845
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  • 29
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    Self-Selection Patterns In Mexico-U.S. Migration : The Role of Migration Networks (2007)
    Washington, D.C : The World Bank
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: Online-Ressource (1 online resource (28 p.))
    Edition: Online-Ausg. World Bank E-Library Archive
    Parallel Title: McKenzie, David Self-Selection Patterns In Mexico-U.S. Migration
    Keywords: Anthropology ; Communities & Human Settlements ; Culture & Development ; Finance and Financial Sector Development ; Financial Literacy ; Gender ; Gender and Social Development ; Health, Nutrition and Population ; Human Migrations and Resettlements ; Immigrants ; Immigration ; Important Policy ; Income Inequality ; Industry ; International Migration ; Job Opportunities ; Labor Market ; Language Proficiency ; Migrant ; Migrants ; Migration ; Population Policies ; Social Development ; Technology Industry ; Voluntary and Involuntary Resettlement ; Anthropology ; Communities & Human Settlements ; Culture & Development ; Finance and Financial Sector Development ; Financial Literacy ; Gender ; Gender and Social Development ; Health, Nutrition and Population ; Human Migrations and Resettlements ; Immigrants ; Immigration ; Important Policy ; Income Inequality ; Industry ; International Migration ; Job Opportunities ; Labor Market ; Language Proficiency ; Migrant ; Migrants ; Migration ; Population Policies ; Social Development ; Technology Industry ; Voluntary and Involuntary Resettlement ; Anthropology ; Communities & Human Settlements ; Culture & Development ; Finance and Financial Sector Development ; Financial Literacy ; Gender ; Gender and Social Development ; Health, Nutrition and Population ; Human Migrations and Resettlements ; Immigrants ; Immigration ; Important Policy ; Income Inequality ; Industry ; International Migration ; Job Opportunities ; Labor Market ; Language Proficiency ; Migrant ; Migrants ; Migration ; Population Policies ; Social Development ; Technology Industry ; Voluntary and Involuntary Resettlement
    Abstract: The authors examine the role of migration networks in determining self-selection patterns of Mexico-U.S. migration. They first present a simple theoretical framework showing how such networks impact on migration incentives at different education levels and, consequently, how they are likely to affect the expected skill composition of migration. Using survey data from Mexico, the authors then show that the probability of migration is increasing with education in communities with low migrant networks, but decreasing with education in communities with high migrant networks. This is consistent with positive self-selection of migrants being driven by high migration costs, and with negative self-selection of migrants being driven by lower returns to education in the U.S. than in Mexico
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  • 30
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    Consolidating Macroeconomic Adjustment in Brazil (2006)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 42 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.531
    Keywords: Economics ; Brazil
    Abstract: Brazil has made considerable progress in recent years towards consolidating macroeconomic stability, which is a key framework condition for sustained growth. Monetary policy continues to respond swiftly to changes in the inflation outlook, anchoring expectations. Fiscal policy has been guided by debt sustainability considerations, delivering primary budget surpluses that have often exceeded the end-year targets. Nevertheless, while the public debt-to-GDP has been reduced, it remains high, especially in comparison with other emerging-market economies. Brazil?s overarching macroeconomic challenge is therefore to continue to reduce the public debt overhang while improving the quality of fiscal adjustment, which has so far been underpinned by revenue hikes, rather than a retrenchment of expenditure commitments. To do so, measures will need to be taken to arrest the increase in current spending, especially on pensions, paving the way for subsequently removing distortions and reducing the tax burden over the medium to longer term, once the debt-to-GDP ratio has been reduced in a sustainable manner. The favourable domestic macroeconomic environment, with falling inflation and improving growth prospects, appears propitious for reform towards the gradual phasing-out of directed credit and a reduction in compulsory reserve requirements.
    DOI: 10.1787/361015676222
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  • 31
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    Improving Labour Utilisation in Brazil (2006)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 41 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.533
    Keywords: Economics ; Brazil
    Abstract: Labour force participation is comparable to the OECD area for prime-age males. It is somewhat lower for females and is trending down for youths as a result of rising school enrolment. The labour market is placing an increasing premium on skills, making it particularly difficult for the less educated to find a job. Labour informality is pervasive and turnover high, especially for the less educated, discouraging investment in labour training and the acquisition of job-related skills, and perpetuating income disparities. The main policy challenge is to improve labour utilisation by reducing informality and fostering human capital accumulation on and off the job. A stable macroeconomy is a pre-condition for reducing unemployment, but a greater focus on activation within the current policy framework would be advisable. To close the remaining gender gap, female labour force participation in full-time jobs could be encouraged by increasing the supply of affordable child care and pre-school education. Labour turnover can be reduced by mitigating the incentives for negotiated separation, which currently arise from the design of severance insurance (FGTS) in the event of unfair dismissal. Skill marketability can be enhanced through the introduction of a national skills certification system, and labour training can become more cost-effective through increased contestability in existing programmes.
    DOI: 10.1787/353720822276
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  • 32
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    Boosting Innovation Performance in Brazil (2006)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 34 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.532
    Keywords: Economics ; Brazil
    Abstract: Brazil's main challenge in innovation policy is to encourage the business sector to engage in productivity-enhancing innovative activities. At 1% of GDP, R&D spending (both public and private) is comparatively low by OECD standards and is carried out predominantly by the government. Most scientists work in public universities and research institutions, rather than in the business sector. Output indicators, such as the number of patents held abroad, suggest that there is much scope for improvement. Academic patenting effort is being stepped up and should be facilitated by the easing of restrictions on the transfer and sharing of proceeds of intellectual property rights between businesses and public universities and research institutions. Innovation policy is beginning to focus on the potential synergies among science and technology promotion, R&D support and trade competitiveness. To be successful in boosting business innovation, these policies will need to be complemented by measures aimed at tackling the shortage of skills in the labour force; this shortage is among the most important deterrents to innovation in Brazil, particularly against the backdrop of a widening gap in tertiary educational attainment with respect to the OECD area.
    DOI: 10.1787/357276015553
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  • 33
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    Social Security Reform in Brazil : Achievements and Remaining Challenges (2006)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 22 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.534
    Keywords: Economics ; Brazil
    Abstract: This paper reviews the main elements of social security reform in Brazil since 1998 and discusses areas where further policy action is yet to be taken to ensure the sustainability of the social-security system over time. Outlays on pensions paid to private-sector workers have risen as a result of population ageing and the increase in the value of the minimum wage in real terms, to which the minimum pension is linked. Some features of existing social protection programmes, including means-tested old-age and disability-related benefits, reduce the incentives facing workers to seek social security coverage. At the same time, an expansion of the base of contributions to social security has been constrained by widespread labour informality. Further reform will therefore need to focus on options for containing the rise in social security spending while tackling labour informality so as to broaden the base of contributions.
    DOI: 10.1787/353362832738
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  • 34
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    Brazil's Fiscal Stance during 1995-2005 : The Effect of Indebtedness on Fiscal Policy Over the Business Cycle (2006)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 39 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.485
    Keywords: Economics ; Brazil
    Abstract: Brazil's fiscal adjustment since the floating of the real in 1999 has been impressive, even in periods of lacklustre growth. This suggests a remarkable fiscal effort to ensure public debt sustainability. To better gauge the magnitude of this adjustment effort, this paper applies the methodology used by the OECD Secretariat to distinguish changes in the fiscal stance that are due to policy action from those that are related to the automatic stabilisers built into the tax code, the social security system and unemployment insurance. The paper's main finding is that discretionary action tends to be essentially pro-cyclical in downturns, underscoring the presence of a strong "sustainability motive" in the conduct of Brazilian fiscal policy. Spending on mandatory items, such as personnel, are pro-cyclical in upturns too, which can create a "ratcheting-up" effect on government spending over time, an issue that will have to be addressed to improve the quality of on-going fiscal adjustment. An increase in the debt-to-GDP ratio by 1 percentage point is associated with a decrease in discretionary federal spending by 0.33 percentage point during 1997-2005. This responsiveness appears to have become stronger after the floating of the real in 1999. This Working Paper relates to the 2005 OECD Economic Survey of Brazil (www.oecd.org/eco/survey/brazil).
    DOI: 10.1787/857281763217
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    The Rates and Revenue of Bank Transaction Taxes (2006)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 29 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.494
    Keywords: Economics
    Abstract: This paper provides cross-country empirical evidence on the productivity of bank transaction taxes (BTTs). Our data set comprises six Latin American countries that have levied BTTs since the late 1980s: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela. We find that, for a given tax rate, revenue declines over time. Therefore, in order to meet a fixed revenue target in real terms, the tax rate needs to be raised repeatedly. However, we also find that successive increases in the tax rate erode the tax base by more than they raise revenue yield and that the higher the increase in the tax rate, the more and faster the tax base is eroded. We conclude that BTTs do not provide a reliable source of revenue, especially over the medium term.
    DOI: 10.1787/652416621832
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  • 36
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    Estimating a Fiscal Reaction Function : The Case of Debt Sustainability in Brazil (2005)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 28 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.423
    Keywords: Economics ; Brazil
    Abstract: This paper reviews recent trends in fiscal performance in Brazil, estimates fiscal reaction functions for the consolidated public sector and different levels of government, and tests for the sustainability of the public debt dynamics. The empirical analysis, based on monthly data for the period 1995-2004, suggests that all levels of government react strongly to changes in indebtedness by adjusting their primary budget surplus targets. In addition, the central government appears to follow a spend-and-tax policy: changes in revenue are affected strongly by expenditure, with about two-thirds of changes in primary spending being offset through higher revenue over the long term. Institutions are also found to matter for fiscal sustainability. The responsiveness of sub-national fiscal stance to indebtedness, as well as that of central government revenue to changes in primary spending, appears to have strengthened after 1998, when ceilings on indebtedness were introduced.
    DOI: 10.1787/556325773018
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  • 37
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    Strengthening Regulation in Chile : The Case of Network Industries (2005)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 30 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.455
    Keywords: Economics ; Chile
    Abstract: Chile’s regulatory framework is working reasonably well. The country’s structural reforms since the 1980s, with the privatisation of utilities and deregulation of product and labour markets, have improved resource allocation and increased the population’s access to basic services, while calling for a comprehensive upgrading of regulatory institutions. At the same time, public-private partnerships (PPPs) are contributing to closing Chile’s infrastructure deficit, particularly in transport. The recurrent cuts in shipments of natural gas from Argentina since 2004 have put additional strain on regulation in the electricity sector to encourage investment in generation and ensure the security of supply. This paper reviews regulatory reform in three network industries (electricity, gas and telecoms), where further liberalisation, particularly in electricity retailing, and improvements in the regulation of telecoms would do much to further improve the business climate. The governance of public-private partnerships can be improved by increasing transparency and accountability in the concession process. In doing so, the government’s exposure to contingent liabilities can be contained. This Working Paper relates to the 2005 OECD Economic Survey of Chile (www.oecd.org/eco/surveys/chile).
    DOI: 10.1787/831502583012
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  • 38
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    Education Attainment in Brazil : The Experience of FUNDEF (2005)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 27 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.424
    Keywords: Economics ; Brazil
    Abstract: For many years, Brazil lagged behind other middle-income countries in terms of school enrolment rates. But since 1998 policies have aimed at bridging this gap, in particular, with the implementation of FUNDEF, a fund for financing sub-national spending on primary and lower-secondary education. Using state- and municipality-level data during 1991-2002, this paper shows that FUNDEF played a key role in the increase in enrolment rates over the period, particularly in small municipalities, which rely more heavily on transfers from higher levels of government as a source of revenue. These findings underscore the importance of FUNDEF in eliminating supply constraints to the improvement of education attainment. Enrolment rates are now nearly universal for primary and lower-secondary education. Emphasis should therefore be placed on policies to improve the quality of services and to remove supply constraints to the expansion of enrolment in upper-secondary and tertiary education.
    DOI: 10.1787/556807485718
    URL: Volltext
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    Fostering Innovation in Chile (2005)
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Details
    Language: English
    Pages: 32 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.454
    Keywords: Economics ; Chile
    Abstract: A good framework for investment in innovation can contribute to increasing Chile’s growth potential. Spending on R&D is currently low in relation to GDP and heavily reliant on government financing. Innovation activity in the business sector is also limited by insufficient seed and venture capital and human capital constraints. This is despite several favourable framework conditions, including a stable macro-economy, liberal foreign trade and investment regimes, and reasonably pro-competition regulations in product markets. The government intends to increase public spending on R&D, to be financed by revenue from the mining tax introduced in May 2005, and to create a National Innovation Council. The effectiveness of these measures will depend largely on the extent to which they will boost business-financed innovation consistent with Chile’s comparative advantages. This Working Paper relates to the 2005 OECD Economic Survey of Chile (www.oecd.org/eco/surveys/chile).
    DOI: 10.1787/835465402444
    URL: Volltext
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